If your business wants to employ workers from outside the United Kingdom, you will usually need a sponsor licence from the Home Office. Kreston Solicitors helps businesses across London (from Enfield, Edmonton and North London to the City and beyond) apply for, maintain and defend their sponsor licences. Our sponsor licence solicitors and business immigration lawyers work with employers of all sizes, from family-run restaurants and care homes to growing technology businesses and professional services firms.
The sponsor licence regime is strict and document-heavy. Even small errors can lead to refusals, suspensions or revocations, with devastating consequences for your business and your sponsored workers. Our London immigration lawyers are here to make sure that does not happen.
What Is a UK Sponsor Licence?
A sponsor licence is permission from UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) for a UK organisation to employ overseas nationals in roles that meet the requirements of a sponsored work route, most commonly the Skilled Worker or Global Business Mobility routes. Once granted, the sponsor can assign Certificates of Sponsorship to individual workers, who then apply for their own visa.
Sponsor licences are usually granted for four years. During that time, the sponsor must meet strict compliance duties including record-keeping, reporting duties and cooperation with the Home Office.
Our Sponsor Licence Services
Sponsor Licence Applications
Our London sponsor licence lawyers guide you through the entire application process, including:
- Advising on the appropriate licence type (Worker, Temporary Worker or both)
- Reviewing eligibility and the ‘genuineness’ of vacancies
- Advising on Authorising Officer, Key Contact and Level 1 and Level 2 Users
- Preparing supporting documents from Appendix A of the sponsor guidance
- Drafting HR policies to demonstrate compliance-readiness
- Preparing for and attending the pre-licence compliance visit, if required
- Responding to Home Office enquiries and requests for further evidence
Ongoing Compliance and HR Support
Being granted a sponsor licence is only the beginning. The Home Office regularly audits sponsors and can attend unannounced. Our sponsor licence solicitors help businesses put the right systems in place, including:
- Right-to-work check procedures and training
- Personnel file templates and document retention policies
- Reporting duties, absences, role changes, terminations, migrant updates
- Annual mock-audit reviews to stress-test your systems
- Sponsor Management System (SMS) training for Level 1 Users
Assigning Certificates of Sponsorship
We advise on SOC occupation codes, appropriate salary levels, rule changes, and the specific requirements for Defined and Undefined Certificates of Sponsorship so that the CoS you issue stands up to scrutiny when the worker applies for their visa.
Suspensions, Revocations and Downgrades
If the Home Office suspends or downgrades your licence (or threatens revocation) you must act quickly. Written representations are usually required within 20 working days. Our London immigration lawyers have experience preparing detailed responses, challenging adverse decisions through pre-action correspondence and, where appropriate, by way of judicial review.
Civil Penalties for Illegal Working
If your business has been issued with a civil penalty notice for allegedly employing an illegal worker, our sponsor licence solicitors can help. Civil penalties have increased significantly in recent years, and a successful objection or appeal can save your business tens of thousands of pounds and protect your sponsor licence.
Who Needs a Sponsor Licence?
You need a sponsor licence if your organisation wants to employ any worker under a sponsored route, including:
Certain Temporary Worker categories
Restaurants, care homes, construction firms, hospitality businesses and professional practices across London and North London increasingly depend on sponsored workers. Our business immigration solicitors understand the pressures these sectors face and provide practical advice to help you comply and grow.
Why Choose Kreston Solicitors?
- Local Enfield office serving London businesses - easy to reach from Central London and across the North London boroughs
- Immigration solicitors regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority
- Practical, HR-focused advice, not just legal theory
- Experience across hospitality, care, construction, retail and professional services
- Clear fixed-fee pricing for most sponsor licence applications
- Representation in compliance visits, audits and enforcement action
Contact Our Sponsor Licence Solicitors
For a confidential, no-obligation discussion of your sponsor licence needs, contact Kreston Solicitors today. We provide consultations at our Enfield office at 44 London Road and, where convenient, remote meetings for employers across London and the UK.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Standard sponsor licence applications are typically decided within approximately eight weeks, although it can take longer if the Home Office requests further information or a compliance visit. A priority service is sometimes available for an additional fee. Our London sponsor licence lawyers will check current processing times before you apply.
The Home Office application fee depends on the size and type of your organisation. Small or charitable sponsors pay a reduced fee compared to medium and large sponsors. In addition, employers pay an Immigration Skills Charge for each sponsored worker at the point the Certificate of Sponsorship is assigned, plus Certificate of Sponsorship fees. We provide an accurate cost breakdown before you commit.
Your main duties include keeping accurate records on every sponsored worker (including passports and right-to-work checks), reporting changes such as absences or role changes via the Sponsor Management System, conducting proper recruitment and paying the correct salary, and cooperating with Home Office compliance visits.
Yes. The Home Office can revoke a sponsor licence if it considers that you have breached your duties, employed illegal workers, or misused the sponsorship system. Revocation is serious, your sponsored workers will usually have their visas curtailed. If you are facing suspension or revocation, contact our London sponsor licence solicitors urgently.
Yes. Kreston Solicitors is based at 44 London Road, Enfield, convenient for London businesses across the City, North London, Haringey, Barnet, Waltham Forest and surrounding boroughs. We also serve clients nationwide via remote meetings.
There is no minimum size. Even a newly incorporated company with a single director can apply. However, you must be a genuine, trading business with systems in place to meet compliance duties. Very new or low-turnover businesses should expect additional scrutiny.
A UK company you set up can, in some circumstances, sponsor you to work in that business, sometimes called ‘self-sponsorship’. It is a developing area that must be carefully structured, with a genuine business and genuine vacancy. Our London business immigration lawyers can advise entrepreneurs on whether this route is appropriate.